B.C. Securities Commission is dealing with a different Panama papers case

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      This morning at 11 a.m. Pacific daylight time, there will be more revelations from the Panama Papers.

      At least 625 Canadians will be among the more than 200,000 holders of offshore accounts whose identities will be made public.

      A searchable online database will disclose the names of directors and shareholders in companies linked to Mossack Fonseca. It's a Panama-based law firm that has been helping wealthy people keep offshore investments secret, including friends of Russian president Vladimir Putin and the father of British prime minister David Cameron.

      Meanwhile, a different Panama papers case has captured the attention of the B.C. Securities Commission.

      At the centre of it is the son of Gordon Fisher, president of Pacific Newspaper Group, which publishes the Vancouver Sun and Province.

      Last November, B.C.'s securities regulator issued a notice of hearing against Glynn David Fisher and Taylor Kennedy Housser in connection with a Panamanian-based company called Verdmont Capital S.A.

      Glynn David Fisher is cofounder, director, and president. He was a B.C.-registered investment adviser from 1994 to 1997.

      Housser is a cofounder, director, and secretary of Verdmont, and was a B.C.-registered investment adviser from 1994 to 1998.

      "BCSC staff alleges that Verdmont offered its services through its website without prominently posting a disclaimer that expressly identifies the foreign jurisdictions in which the offering or solicitation is qualified to be made, and failed to take reasonable precautions not to sell to B.C. residents," the commission stated in a November 18 news release. "In doing so, staff maintains Verdmont held itself out as being in the business of trading and advising in securities, and carried out both activities without being registered to do so."

      Verdmont Capital is in voluntary liquidation, according to its website.

      The news release mentioned the existence 112 brokerage accounts with Verdmont for more than 100 B.C. residents. The commission has alleged that the company collected approximately $1.5 million in fees and commissions from the most active B.C. accounts.

      "BCSC staff maintains that by trading in securities on behalf of over 100 B.C. residents without being registered, Vermont, Fisher and Housser breached securities laws pertaining to registration requirements," the commission stated in the news release.

      None of the allegations have been proven. The Verdmont Capital website has announced that it is in "voluntary liquidation".

      "If you are a client, please contact us as soon as possible to arrange the closure of your account and the delivery of your assets," it states.

      A B.C Securities Commission hearing is scheduled in late November.

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